Friends with the faces of enemies
by ExiledValkyrie
Summary: What if Merlin and Morgana were completely in love and she was only pretending to be evil? What would be the Round Table's reaction when they return? How will they keep the Darkness from consuming the world once and for all?
1. Prologue

Prologue

We had failed. After Arthur had discovered Merlin's magic he had to run. Without him there, and everyone turned against him except Gaius and Mordred, it became more and more difficult to protect him. Gaius was watched like a hawk, and Mordred, bless him, did his best but really couldn't help that much.

When they came after him, he ran. He came home to me and we tried to guide them all from afar, but it was just about hopeless. Merlin's "betrayal" had caused the King to became irrational and short tempered, bordering on violent.

Eventually, as we feared might happen, he went too far.

He had captured a Druid girl that Mordred had grown up with and loved. Despite his plea's, Arthur had her executed. Mordred went utterly mad with grief.

Mordred was so far gone on revenge that he allowed the ancient, primordial Darkness My Merlin and I had been doing our best to hold back to taint his magic and corrupt him. To twist and blacken the deepest parts of his soul until he was a shell of himself. Barely recognizable but for his outward, physical appearance.

The armies of dark, vicious. otherworldly creatures swarmed over albion, released from the confines that my Merlin and I had so painstakingly fortified over the years, by Mordred, who had used his own corrupted magic and the Darknesses own power combined to break through our inexperienced wards.

They destroyed almost everything.

For ten years we had worked to keep it contained, I had sacrificed my family, my friends and my home, turned myself into a perceived enemy of Camelot so that I could get close enough with my Merlin to destroy it forever.

Through it all my Merlin stood by me. We never told any one of our relationship, not because we were ashamed-far from it- but because it was easier. At first, Uther would have, a the very least, banished Merlin. He never would have thought of allowing a manservant to court his beloved ward. Then, we had to make it seem that I had turned against Camelot, and Merlin would have been executed if we had been found out.

But the moment we had locked eyes across the courtyard his first day in Camelot, we had known, our magic had known. Our magic had formed a bond that day, a marriage that not even the Gods could break. Most would call us fools, but the sheer strength of our connection was such that we were married before we knew each others name. We trusted one another so completely, knew each other so well that it was like we had one mind, one soul.

Most people have a name for this type of connection. Love at first sight being the most common.

And that brings us to now. Me walking in the deathly silent aftermath of Camlann, my Merlin standing along the banks of Lake Avalon.

"Mo ghaol, I was too late, to slow. He's gone." Merlin said in my mind. He sent me a mental image of a burning boat. My Merlin's grief, along with my own tore at my insides. My little brother was gone.

"We tried our best, gràdh. At least we saved most of Camelot and kept Gwen on the throne."

"It's not good enough."

We were silent for a time. I finally turned away from the field of slaughter and cast a spell that would hasten my steps as I made my way to Merlin.

Aithusa arrived just as I did, worried for her Dragonlord.

When I reached him, his legs gave out and we sat on the banks for hours, comforting each other. Aithusa curled around us, warming us with her heat, and rested her head on his lap.

"He never knew." He finally whispered.

"Knew what, gràdh?" I murmured back. But I had an inkling of what the answer was.

"That you-we- loved him, that you weren't evil. That you were only trying to protect those you loved."

I was about to respond when he pulled himself out of my arms and shifted to face me and Aithusa. He took hold of one of my hands and rested the other on Aithusa's snout.

"That's not all though, just after A-Arthur died Kilgharrah told me that he would rise again, when the world needed him. H-He said that we had to wait for that time and be there to help. In that time we are to be guardians of magic. Gods on earth."

I knew what that meant. As did my Merlin.

We were Immortal. For as long as Magic is alive, we would be as well.

 **AN: this has been rattling around for a while so I had to write it down. I could never find this type of story, so I made my own. Hope you enjoy. I'm not quite sure where I want this to go, so if you have any ideas let me hear them!**

 **Translations:**

 **Mo ghaol= my love**

 **Gràdh= beloved**


	2. Is that them?

Chapter 1

Morgana opened her eyes to see the first hint of dawn creeping through the floor to ceiling windows. She smiled. It was one of her favorite times of the day. It was one of the rare peaceful times now, when the world was filled with so much noise.

Especially in their London penthouse.

Getting up, she went into the kitchen to start the coffee maker, also known as one of her favourite of recent inventions. As the wonderful smell began to waft through the air, she went back to the large, luxurious bedroom, her toes sinking into the plush, creamy carpet.

Leaning over, she turned on the lamp on the nightstand, and gently began shaking the blanket covered form that remained on the bed.

"Gràdh, wake up. You have to get ready for the board meeting. And I have to go to the outskirts of the city and look at some potential properties and investments." At the sound of my voice the white wolf with a sheen of gold to her fur lifted her head and looked them sleepily.

Merlin groaned as he awoke. When she simply lifted an elegant eyebrow, he grumbled but got out of bed, albeit muttering to himself.

"I hate morning people...and mornings….and people." At her snort of amusement, he gave her a mock glare. "Why are you up so early anyway?"

At this she paused. And frowned. "I'm not actually sure, but I feel so full of energy. Maybe today is important?"

"Why would it be important?" Merlin asked. "Today is hardly different from the day when we started our company…..That's it. It's the fiftieth anniversary of when we started. And look at us now. Multi-trillion dollar company spanning the globe, with branches into every industry imaginable."

Morgana smiled. "That must be it. Now go get showered and dressed, the coffee's almost done so we can ride to the office together."

After Merlin left, she called to the wolf. "Aithusa come on, let's get you fed. You're coming with me today." The dragon in disguise yipped with joy, she loved going with them.

As Aithusa ate, Morgana got herself ready.

She looked through her large walk in closet, and decided on an outfit. She chose a teal colored sweater dress that fell to just above her knees, it had a loose turtleneck and was belted at the waist with a brown belt of tooled leather. Slim, knee high boots of the same color, a styled, beaded cuff around her wrist, and her wedding bands completed the outfit.

As she headed to meet Merlin in the kitchen, she paused, a strange feeling coming over her. After a moment she decided it was either anticipation or jitters. Confused, she tried to figure out why, but just before she had it, it felt like she was shoved and she slammed into a wall.

She heard a muffled thud and a curse from Merlin, and reached out with her magic to find out that the same thing had happened to him.

"Whoo, magic is sure agitated today." Merlin called. Magic had been acting up ever since the Industrial Revolution, it was nothing to be worried about. It was more like a grumpy old man yelling "get off my lawn" at children who don't realize the boundaries they cross.

Electricity had only made it even worse. Sometimes neither Merlin or Morgana could believe it had been 25,000 years since their wait had begun. They had seen and done many incredible things. They dedicated their time between helping others and learning whatever caught their attention.

Be it languages, or martial arts, of which they both excelled. Medicine, magic, business, politics, cooking. Anything and everything they could think of. They even decided to spend time apart, traveling and learning, the longest separation they had ever had being a century long. They always came back to each other, but even the most devoted lovers needed to spend time apart.

When they both got to the kitchen, she smiled at his outfit. Gone were the days of frayed tunics and raggedy neckerchiefs.

Today Merlin had decided on black, Italian leather shoes with exposed laces, stylishly worn, distressed blue jeans, a pale blue button up shirt, two buttons open at the collar, and a navy blazer. His sunglasses were in hand, rings glinting slightly as he was tucking them into the front pocket of his blazer.

Morgana couldn't help but think he looked delicious. She went over and gave him a long, hard kiss. "I love you, you know. Forever."

Merlin smiled down at her. "Until the stars burn out." he replied.

Everytime he was romantic like that Morgana swore her heart skipped a beat.

Merlin gave her another kiss, shorter, but no less filled with love and passion, before he released her and said, "we can get breakfast here or on the way."

When she indicated that they should eat breakfast on the way. He grabbed two chocolate chocolate chip muffins out of thin air and opened the door for her and Aithusa.

Ever the gentleman.

When they got into the waiting limousine, both Merlin and Morgana took the ride, as was their tradition, to reflect on how the world had changed, what they had done and what they could do in the future.

When the limo stopped, they jumped slightly, they shared a look tinged with faint amusement, they hadn't even realised how close they were. As one of their drivers politely opened the door for them, Merlin leaned over and gave Morgana a quick kiss goodbye before he stepped out and made his way inside.

Pulling away from the curb Morgan directed him to the very outer limits of the city.

-Time skip-

Most of the day went by in a blur of meetings and negotiations. For Merlin the most interesting thing that happened before he got home was when one of the water kegs fell and spilled everywhere. It ruined a printer.

For Morgana, it was a little different.

On her way home she stopped in a little internet cafe that truly had good coffee and pastries. It was one of those that had a couple of TV's with at least one turned to the news.

Waiting for her order, she idly glanced between the sets before a flash of bright red snagged her attention.

She froze. And stared.

Her brother was on television, along with the rest of the Round Table.

Ungluing, she tuned into the report and learned that the footage was from a few hours earlier. It was believed that, as the were knights were shouting in a mixture of Olde English and what was believed to be Welsh, that they were drunk foreigners and trying to Larp. Especially as they were waving their swords about.

She rolled her eyes. Like that was going to help.

Morgana knew she needed to go get them before they got themselves into even more trouble. Luckily a shot of them being arrested showed what police station they were in.

Morgana sighed, so much for coffee, and walked outside to the limo, she suddenly hoped it had enough space.

This was not going to be easy. Not with their history

-Brief time skip-

Before walking into the police station, she used her magic to create identities for every member of the Round Table, just in case and walked up to the sergeant at the desk. When the woman asked, rather rudely, what she wanted, she simply smiled the most charming smile she could muster through her nerves and told her.

She was here for the, *giggle*, "drunk foreigners".

The woman rolled her eyes, but lead her to the cell dubbed the "drunk tank". She told Morgana to go through while she went to get the paperwork necessary to release them to her.

Before she went through the door, she smoothed her dress and took a deep breath. Next the door was a one way mirror, she could see them, but they couldn't see her. At the moment it appeared that Gwaine, Percival,Gaius and Lancelot were relaxing, maybe even napping. The others Leon, Elyan, Gwen and ARTHUR, were deep in discussion. Maybe she should have had Merlin come with her? No. He was in important negotiations with Singapore and Russia at the moment.

She could handle this.

An: Tada! First full chapter! Now how should I write the reunions? Its very important, it sets the tone for a good portion of the story. Review and let me know people! I want to hear typing from here! Mwahahaha!


	3. Ta Da! It's a bit different huh?

Chapter 2

The door opened surprisingly quietly. I walk in just to hear Arthur say, "...get us out of wherever here is." As he and those speaking with them turned to the others, I stepped forward and cleared my throat.

As in their training, all the knights whipped around and shot to their feet. The second they registered my presence, they reached for the swords that had been confiscated from them upon their arrest.

They didn't even ask questions. They instantly started accusing me, cursing me and in Gwen's case, who had risen from her nap behind all the knights, staring at me sadly. Lancelot was another exception, he was one of the few quicker on the uptake, I suppose that was part of why My Merlin liked him so much, and had likely been taking in the differences of everything since they returned. He settled for eyeing me with a close scrutiny.

I wasn't sure whether to be pleased or sad that I had played my role so efficiently, to gain this sort of reaction from the majority of them, all those years ago. I loved these people, but sometimes it was like they took idiot pills for breakfast and threw their whole day off.

Gaius, knowing the truth, simply sent me a small, unnoticed smile that touched upon his affection for me before focusing on my outfit.

I snorted as his famous, Merlin named, Eyebrow of Doom made its appearance. Seriously, it just shot up like someone yanked on a string.

That made Arthur even more enraged, "What are you laughing at you filthy sorceress? You did this, didn't you? Where did you bring us?" he hissed before he finally shut up and registered my appearance.

"What in the gods name are you _wearing_?"

I smiled before becoming serious. Speaking in the language of my youth, I responded. "I know you must have questions, but I need you to hold off on them for a little bit so we can get home."

 _Huh, we might have to move to one of our country estates in order to have enough bedrooms. Or space in general….. Maybe the one outside of Cardiff._

Before Arthur could finish stuttering that they weren't going _anywhere_ with me. An officer came in with their release papers while another carried a bag of their confiscated weapons.

"Ah, excellent, I have important things to do so I need to move this along." When the officer stared at me like I was a two-headed alien, I realised my mistake. Repeating myself was _not_ something I enjoyed, but I did it anyway in modern english. I pretended to ignore the way those in the cell stared in shock and confusion. I just wanted to get home and deal with the inevitable explosion, and the second one that was undoubtedly going to happen when My Merlin came home.

I had a headache just thinking about it. There would most likely be yelling.

The man nodded, trying to pull up his professional mask, and before the watchful eyes of the Round Table, I signed document after document to ensure their release into my custody.

Finally finished, the second officer handed my the large duffle bag containing the weapons and the keys to the cell.

When they left, I turned to the others and asked, "Are you ready to get out of here?" with my old, practiced-in-front-of-a-mirror evil smirk firmly in place. I might mess with them just a little.

It worked. They were instantly wary and I decided to shock them once more.

I used magic to open the cell. They backed up so quickly that Gwaine slammed into Lancelot and they both went backwards over one of the benches.

I laughed. I couldn't help it. They looked so ridiculous with their legs in the air, shoving and cursing at each other. Gwaine was more the one cursing.

"Stop laughing witch." Arthur snarled. At the same time that Leon said, "It's not funny you traitor."

Really, I understood their position. Here I was, a supposed enemy, who they thought had tried to kill them multiple times over. But, the kicker was, I was the only known face in this strange place they found themselves in.

But a lady has her limits. If what they thought were insults didn't stop, I was going to get annoyed.

When they made no move to leave the cell, I sighed. "Well come on, I haven't got all day." I had an enormous amount paperwork to do. On the way here my assistant Davina had called saying one of the "deals" I was overseeing was in danger of falling through. In reality is was more of a takeover, but the CEO of the failing company was one of those morons that needed their hand held every step of the way.

As they slowly moved forward, I turned on heel with the bag of weapons in one hand and my phone in the other, walking to the limo while texting instructions to Davina to set up a meeting tomorrow to save the takeover from the moron, then for a joint meeting with both Merlin and I to find someone who could temporarily run the day to day operations of our company: Arcane Industries.

Of course, Arcane Industries was only the main corporation's name, the brand I suppose, we had almost one hundred subsidiaries around the world along with all of _their_ acquisitions.

Maybe we were more of a conglomerate. Hmmm, either way, Merlin and I each owned 50% percent of the major shares. Actually we owned most of the shares period. We only released enough stock not to arouse suspicion as to where we were getting the start up money. This effectively took it private and led us to becoming two of the richest people in the world. I was pretty sure only the major names like Google and Bill Gates were wealthier.

Maybe.

Who knew My Merlin and I had _incredible_ instincts for business. Wait until they all found out! It will be hysterical.

Arriving outside with the others following yet keeping their distance, my driver got out to open the door for us. When I turned to gesture them inside, I laughed internally and took a picture with my phone. As they looked around, their faces resembled fish with dislocated jaws.

Elyan happened to stumble forward coming off of the last stair, a testament to his shock and disorientation, and almost went head first into oncoming traffic. I lunged forward just as Gwen cried, "Elyan!" and grabbed the collar of his armor just before a double decker bus passed inches from his nose while blaring its horn. It very nearly took his head off.

Even as Elyan started to give me a hesitant nod of thanks, manners were manners after all and he was a Knight of Camelot, that made Arthur scared. And when he gets scared, he lashes out.

"We are not getting into those _beasts_. Look, they very clearly _eat_ people and you're just _standing_ there like it's _normal_!."

I huffed. "Arthur, they don't eat people, look." I pointed to a taxi that had three people getting out. "Furthermore, just think of them as carriages or wagons that are powered by magic. They won't hurt you." I would explain vehicles later but I just didn't have that kind of time right now.

After a moment, Gaius mustered his courage and took me at my word. He ignored the hissed " _Gaius_ " from Gwen, and the half outstretched hand about to stop him. Gaius looked uncertain but not in the fearful way. It was more like he didn't know quite how to proceed. As he neared, I reached out and gently took his arm to guide him, ignoring the sharp intakes of breath and shifting stances.

As I helped him climb in, murmuring that he should move all the way to the back, he muttered a single word so that only I could hear him, "Merlin?" I gave him a tiny nod and smile that the angle of my body hid. He relaxed ever so slightly hidden from view inside of the limo.

Knowing it would slightly reassure the others, he called out, "It's okay, Sire. It seems to be perfectly safe. And the seating area is quite comfortable to, if I might add."

Taking deep breathes, they moved cautiously forward and mimicked Gaius's movement into the vehicle. I heared surprised murmurs at the different, for lack of a better word, decor and the comfort of the seats.

When I entered, I breathed a sigh of relief. The Triple Goddess must have been smiling at me, for there were exactly enough seats for all of us. Aithusa, who had been waiting patiently as only a dragon can, graciously moved to the floor to make room for everyone. Even Percival was comfortable.

I told the driver to return home. Another building My Merlin and I owned. A skyscraper filled with higher end apartments called Myriad Tower Apartments.

Things were quiet at first, moving through rush hour traffic in London, before Gwen spoke up, managing to tear Gwaine and even Lancelot from where they had their noses squished against the windows.

Well, Gwaine anyway, Lancelot managed to keep his dignity.

"Where are we, Morgana?"

I sighed. "To keep long story short, it has been a _very_ long time since Camelot. The world has changed so much. You will need help to learn all the knew quirks and rules…. We especially need to get you out of those clothes. They draw too much attention and they look out of place here."

"Where is here?" Percival spoke for the first time. As I answered I heard the song change in the background. "We're in London, Percival, one of the major cities in what Albion has become."

All of a sudden, I tuned into the background music, and smiled in delight as I recognized the song My Merlin and I had danced around our living room to on our anniversary last year.

Wondering at my sudden smile and seeing that I was listening to the music that was in a language they didn't understand. Gaius asked, "What are the words?"

Of course Gaius would be the one to realize they would need to learn a whole new language in order to understand this new time. He took it upon himself to explain this to the others while I hesitantly began translating the song. The others listened surprisingly intently. Trying to dissect the patterns of words and pair both sets of words together to understand the meaning of each one.

"In case you didn't know

Baby I'm crazy 'bout you

And I would be lying if I said

That I could live this life without you

Even though I don't tell you all the time

You had my heart a long, long time ago

In case you didn't know

You've got all of me

I belong to you

Yeah you're my everything."

I was cut off by the limo coming to a stop outside the apartment building. I gestured for them to follow as I got out of the car and approached the doors. The kindly old doorman tipped his hat at me and barely raised an eyebrow at my company trailing after me like lost, inquisitive puppies. I always liked him. We should give him a raise. Mental note.

After convincing them that the elevator wouldn't swallow them whole and dump them into an black, endless abyss, I used my key to ensure that we would get to the penthouse without stopping.

Stepping off, they were immediately treated to the sight of months of careful decorating. They would be surprised to learn that its gorgeous cherry hardwood floors offset with plush snow white rugs with subtle leaf patterns, eclectic and stylish but comfortable furniture and gorgeous modern artwork was mostly My Merlin's choices.

He did have incredible taste.

Turning toward the others, locking the magic room and Merlins and my bedroom with magic as I did so. I said, "this is where we're staying for the night. We'll move somewhere bigger soon but we weren't expecting you. Why don't you make yourself at home and explore while I start dinner?"

When I turned to go I was stopped by Lancelot's voice. "When you say _we_ weren't expecting you, who's we?"

Finally, it's time for the bombshells to start dropping. Duck and cover! This is gonna be explosive!

"Well Lancelot, this is Merlin's apartment to." I walked into the kitchen, ignoring the group's shocked exclamation of

"WHAT!"

 **An: next chapter is the big show down! Well, the first one anyway. What should happen? Leave reviews! And to the ONLY people who have left reviews:** **Meri ley,** **Elle Light** **and FaeMelody, I am talking to you! Thank you** _ **so**_ **much. You are true believers. *whispering* maybe you can get the others to review to?**


	4. In which Arthur can't shut up

Chapter 3

Unsurprisingly, it had taken them about twenty minutes for them to get over _that_ little nugget of information and come find and confront Morgana.

 _Silly little children, they would need to be much faster on the uptake in this fast paced world or this was just going to take forever._

As she glanced at the news playing on the muted flatscreen mounted on the wall, none of them had that kind of time. Not if the riots and famine in the third world countries that had been increasingly occurring lately were anything to go by.

She sighed and turned the TV off just as they all "stalked" in. _How cute, they thought they were threatening._

She sort of wished it had taken them a little bit longer. By now it was almost six. Dinner would be ready soon, (she cheated a little and used magic) and Merlin would be home in time to eat.

Looking at them, she noticed one missing from their group. "Where is Gaius?" she asked while chopping the last of the vegetables.

Looking at her coldly, with half an eye warily on the knife in her hand, Arthur answered, "He's sitting in an area with a lot of furniture, looking at all of the paintings and statues."

"Ah, one of the sitting rooms then. I know you came in here to say something but I should tell you it should wait until dinner…"

"No, what did you mean by this being Merlin's apartment to?" Gwen, surprisingly, demanded. She looked every inch the Queen she once was.

Morgana could feel through her magic that Merlin was entering the building at that moment. So, glancing at Aithusa for a slight burst of courage and calm, she said the first thing that she could think to stall their questions just a little bit longer.

Holding up her left hand, with her wedding bands on clear display, sparkling slightly in the last of the sunset and said, "I assume you all know what these are?"

There was a beat of silence, as they all registered what she was presenting them with, before denial mixed with growing tinges of anger and betrayal flashed across all of their faces.

Arthur, finally snapping from the immense pressure of the day, yelled, "No, Merlin wouldn't do that! He wouldn't betray us, his friends, his _family_! Betray _me_ that way! He wouldn't _marry_ you! A _witch_! Not _willingly_. You must have enchanted him! Because otherwise he _wouldn't_!"

I got angry, finally, after trying so hard to keep it together. But this was just too much. I wasn't going to take this shit, and Merlin wouldn't either. But since he wasn't quite here yet, it was my job as his Mate to set them straight until he could.

" _Excuse me_?! He wouldn't _betray_ you? _You_? Like you did to _him_? Have you somehow _forgotten_ what actually happened? What most of you did? "King" Arthur, his Fair Queen, and his Noble Knights! You _finally_ discover My Merlin's innate magic, something he was _born_ with, something he had _no_ control over having, and you all turned on him so fast it was like he meant _nothing_ to you at _all_! You labeled him as a _traitor_ and tried to kill him when he did absolutely _nothing_ but protect all of you since he _met_ you."

"Do you _know_ how much he has lost, how much _we_ have lost trying to protect you and Camelot? Where _exactly_ do you get off playing the bloody _victim_ here?"

Many of them seemed to, surprisingly, hear Morgana somewhat and actually think about their actions.

Lancelot who had been dead for a few years before any of this happened, looked outraged at the implications of what she was saying.

Percival, Gwaine and Gwen seemed to realize exactly what they had truly done and looked extremely guilty and pained at the realization of how much they must've hurt Merlin with their thoughtless actions. They really did care for him.

 _That didn't mean they were off the hook, though_.

Leon and Elyan simply didn't seem to know what to think. _That was fair_ , Morgana decided, _they were entitled to feel that way_.

Arthur was so angry about his perceived betrayal that he wasn't really listening.

Two things happened simultaneously after that.

The first, Gaius came wandering in, asking what all the shouting was about.

The second, even as Leon turned to give a quick recap of the last five minutes and Morgana opened the oven to take dinner out, the door swung open rather quickly.

Before all of their eyes, Merlin strode through looking annoyed and radiating command with a touch of you-do-as-I-say-because-I-tell-you-to, snapping at someone in Portuguese.

From the conversation I got before he stopped dead at the sight of our guests, someone had just been fired because they disobeyed orders, thinking they knew how to run the company better, and as a result it was found out that the employees of that branch had no insurance following a rather large scale accident related directly to those disobeyed orders.

After Merlin hung up the phone, he stood there, waiting. He knew that most present wouldn't listen until they had had their say, or rather, rant. Actually, mostly Arthur, the others might be persuaded to listen.

Arthur, being his usual insensitive, thoughtless self, jumped right down his throat. No hello, been a long time or, good to see you. Just straight up yelling and accusations.

"Is it true _Mer_ lin? Have you really betrayed us by marrying this _witch_? Who, in case you don't remember has tried to kill us all! Who tried to destroy Camelot! Now we're gods knows where and you don't even have the decency to keep her away from us! If you're some sort of "great and powerful" sorcerer, why have you not taken care of her?" His voice was filled with rage and venom.

Even the knights were starting to look stunned as Arthur's callous words flooded the room. Gwen, Gaius, Lancelot, Gwaine and Morgana were already glaring at him.

Merlin it seemed, had finally had enough of being Arthur's verbal punching bag. After ten years of putting up with it. It was time to show them who he had become these long millennia with Morgana by his side.

Without raising his voice, he very deliberately, very calmly commanded, "stop talking."

Before he could say more, once more Arthur jumped in. "What did you just say? _I am your king_! You have _no_ to right to speak to me that way."

Everyone but Merlin and Arthur glanced at Morgana when she snorted and shook her head at that. Though Merlin did send her a brief greeting through their magic. He should have stopped talking when her beloved told him to.

Merlin's eyes narrowed, flaring a dangerous gold. "First of all, you are NOT the king anymore. Second, Camelot has not existed for thousands of years. And third, you _will_ not be eating the meal Morgana has prepared for us tonight until you apologize for your behavior to her and your insults. DO NOT speak of things you don't understand."

"You need to learn some humility, these days if you act like that, people will not hesitate to punch you in the face, or worse."

While everyones jaws once again flapped in the breeze, Morgana smiled.

While they were a partnership, there did have to be a dominant half. When they had realized that, about a hundred years after Arthur's reign had ended, they ultimately decided that since Merlin's magic was stronger, if by just a smidge, he should be the dominant party.

Since he was the dominant partner, not that Morgana was in anyway submissive, he could take control in certain situations and give orders to Morgana if it was needed. (i.e life and death or high stress). It was rare nowadays, the last time had been during the war in the forties.

This was not life or death, and he didn't have to give orders, but it was a time when she had to follow his lead unquestionably. She didn't absolutely _have_ to though, it wasn't total control, if she was genuinely opposed to it, he couldn't force her. It was like a retired General commanding troops.

Morgana would follow his lead, just as he followed hers. But it _was_ Merlin's right to be in charge right now.

After a moment of silence, Merlin swung his attention to her. He walked over, wrapped his arms around her and asked with a loving smile, "how was your day mo ghaol?"

"Today was very…. productive, gradh. Although, I do have some things to discuss with you about the company now that they're back."

He nodded then turned to Gaius and smiled happily. Merlin rushed to hug his father figure, and suddenly Morgana moved forward and joined the hug.

Both men welcomed her.

When they all pulled back, Arthur opened his mouth to speak again when Merlin's head snapped up.

"Not another word unless it's an apology." he growled warningly.

Turning to face everyone he said, "let's eat I'm sure everyone is hungry. We can hash this all out after dinner. Arthur you can stay here or sit at the table with us, but I meant what I said. Why should Morgana feed you if all you do is insult her?"

With that, he went to collect dinner to take to the formal dining room and walked out answering a few of Gaius's questions about the time period. Morgana grabbed a few things and handed them to the closest person, which happened to be Elyan, and motioned that he follow Merlin and Gaius.

Grabbing the rest, Morgana turned to follow when the same jittery feeling swept over her and, again feeling as if she were shoved, feel to the ground dropping everything, the crashing sound from just outside the dining room signified that Merlin was down as well.

"You know," Merlin called, "this is really getting old."

Morgana huffed in annoyance, "you're telling me, tell that to my dry-cleaner!"

"I guess I should call for takeout, how does Italian sound?"

As she called that that sounded fine, there was a rush of questions about what had just happened, a few wondering if there had been an attack.

Just one more thing to explain after dinner.


End file.
